I was a strange, antisocial child. I had insomnia, so I watched a lot of late-night movies from the 30s and 40s, and then I started reading about Hollywood. I realised acting was a job you could choose to do – so I looked under A for agent in the Yellow Pages, then called from the school payphone and signed up. My first job was a public service ­announcement encouraging kids not to be embarrassed by their grandparents if they had a weird ­accent because they came from a foreign country.

What one song would work as the soundtrack to your life?

That's How Strong My Love Is by OV Wright, because I'm a romantic at heart.

What's your favourite museum or art gallery?

The Exploratorium in San Francisco. It's really interactive: you can freeze your shadow or go into a whisper chamber. You can also spend the night. I haven't yet, but would like to as a birthday treat.

What's the greatest threat to ­film-making today?

The same as always: the fact that there's a bunch of guys in charge, with sometimes questionable tastes, who dictate what gets seen.

Which other living artists do you most admire?

My uncle Haskell Wexler, who is a ­cinematographer and photographer, for fighting for justice ever since he was young. The FBI have a file on him, because he protested against Gone With the Wind for its representation of black people, aged 13. And Banksy, for his ­humour and irreverence.

What's been your biggest challenge?

Overcoming my shyness and ­insecurity. That held my work back for a long time, but eventually I realised that everybody in movies is so consumed by themselves, they don't really care about you.

Complete this sentence: At heart I'm just a frustrated . . .

Musician. I write folksy ballads or slow blues on guitar or piano, because I can't change chords very quickly.

Is there an art form you don't relate to?

Mime. I'm not a big fan of those guys who torment you in the street.

What's the biggest myth about actors?

That they are interesting because they play an interesting character. Remember, if they are in the role of some high-powered, brilliant businessman, walking down the street with a briefcase, it's just filled with crumpled newspapers. It's not real.

In short:

Born: Chicago, 1960.

Career: Films include Blade Runner, Splash and Kill Bill. Her latest film, A Closed Book, is out on DVD on 22 February.High point: "Blade Runner. It was like the Wizard of Oz: we all went into another reality."Low point: "Doing some films just for the cash, which hopefully went straight to video and no one ever saw."